Double Betrayal at Corcyra
In a single day, allies became executioners—Corcyra’s prison turned into a slaughterhouse.
Benigno Bossi (Italian, 1727–1792) — "Inventor of Greek Figures, Plate 10" (1771), CC0
Prisoners Promised Safety.
During the Peloponnesian War, Corcyra (modern Corfu) erupted in bloody civil strife. The oligarchic faction tricked their rivals—luring them out of the temple sanctuary with promises of a fair trial. Instead, the prisoners were marched through a gauntlet of jeers and stones.
The Courtroom Turns Into a Trap.
As Thucydides describes, the accused were judged in batches, then led straight to their deaths. Some, realizing the betrayal, sprinted for altars or cut their own throats rather than be butchered by their countrymen. No one could tell who might be the next to switch sides.
How a City Tears Itself Apart.
By nightfall, Corcyra was slick with blood and old loyalties meant nothing. Thucydides called it 'the most violent revolution of all.' In civil war, the real danger often wears a familiar face.
Civil war on the island of Corcyra shows how quickly political alliances can dissolve—when friend turns on friend, nobody is safe.
